The Alterverse
by sbdrag
Summary: From a garganta ten times as powerful as the norm a girl named Tiamut Bast appears. She claims to be a revizard of the resistance against Sosuke Aizen. Except, Ichigo has already defeated Aizen. So who exactly is she, and where did she come from...?/ rated M for language, eventual angst
1. Cannonverse

Ichigo jumped forward, slicing through the hallow's mask without effort. It disappeared, and he waited a moment before straightening. He sighed, resting Zangetsu on his shoulder. This was the fifteenth one today, and they seemed to just keep coming. It wasn't like it was too difficult, since they were all low level hallows, but… Kurosaki didn't understand where they were all coming from. Especially when some of them looked kind of familiar…

Ichigo flinched, then whirled around as a garganta opened up behind him At least, it looked like a garganta, but… there was almost ten times the amount of energy of a normal garganta. Ichigo braced himself against it, pulling Zangetsu to the ready for whatever appeared…

A girl stumbled out, falling to the ground hard. She was panting, covered in blood and bruises. The biggest wound seemed to be a large gash in her side that she was pressing her hand to. She had a sword in her hand, and wore a shihakusho. The garganta closed behind her, and she seemed to be a bit delirious.

"Shit…"

As Ichigo approached her, he saw that her eyes were glazed over. She was struggling on the ground, but it was hard to tell what she was trying to do. She managed to writhe onto her back, and Ichigo lowered Zangetsu as he leaned down next to her in shock. She squinted up at him blearily.

"…Kuro…saki…?" she asked, and Ichigo flinched in surprise. Before he had a chance to ask, the girl's eyes rolled back in her head and she passed out. Ichigo stared dumbly for a minute, then sheathed Zangetsu and carefully picked the girl up. She whimpered.

"…shit," he said, then took off for Urahara's shop, hoping he made it in time…

"I don't recognize her, but with how long I've been gone, there are plenty of new faces in Seireitei," Urahara said, putting a damp washcloth on the girl's forehead. She was feverish and muttering in her sleep, but all her wounds had been cleaned and wrapped, so all there was to do now was wait. They'd put a message out to Soul Society, but no one had been reported missing.

"It's very strange," Rukia said, worn out from using kido on the girl's larger injuries. "I don't recognize her either, but her reiatsu feels somewhat familiar, doesn't it?"

"I agree," Urahara said. Ichigo was off fighting more hallows that had appeared, leaving the girl to the shopkeeper and shinigami. "But there's something… off about it, as well. It reminds me of a vizard, yet there seems to be some kind of disconnect."

"You're right," Rukia said. "When I was trying to heal her, it was as if my kido kept slipping off. I had to force it work, or I would have been able to do more."

"It's all very strange…" Urahara said. Suddenly, the girl gasped and opened her eyes wide. Urahara and Rukia jumped in surprise, and the girl leapt to her feet and away. She drew her zanpakuto, panting as she glared around the room. Rukia and Urahara made to get to her feet, but suddenly the girl paused. She seemed confused, lowering her weapon as she stared at both of them.

"Urahara and Kuchiki…? But… I don't understand… why do you two look so…" the girl stopped midsentence, her legs giving out on her. Rukia rushed to her side, but Urahara staid back, eyes calculating.

"Hey! Don't wear yourself out, you're injured," Rukia said, supporting the girl on one side. The girl, refusing to let go of her sword, stared dumbly as the shinigami helped her back to the futon she'd been resting on. Consciousness slipping, she stared up at her saviors through half-lidded eyes.

"Kuchiki-san… what… happened…?" she asked, and slipped away again. Rukia stared, dumbstruck and horrified, as if she'd seen a ghost. Urahara made her flinch when he put a hand on her shoulder. He gave her a reassuring look.

"We'll know more when she's had time to rest," he said. Rukia swallowed, then nodded, backing away.

"I'm returning to Seireitei to report this," she said, and Urahara nodded. Pulling out his fan, he sat down next to the girl. He replaced the fallen washcloth, watching the girl with interest.

"Just who are you…?" he wondered.

"Hey, any improvement?" Ichigo asked, stepping into the back of the shop. He blinked in surprise. "Oh, hey Unohana-taichou."

"Good evening, Kurosaki-san," Unohana said. She had the girl's head resting in her lap, using kido to finish healing her. The girl was calm and peaceful for the first time since she had mysteriously appeared, and that at least was a relief.

"So, who is she?" Ichigo asked, walking in and sitting down next to Urahara. The shopkeeper shrugged.

"We still don't know. There's no record of her in Seireitei," he said. Ichigo blinked, then looked around the room.

"Well, that explains why everyone's here…" he said. There was Unohana, Renji, Rukia, Byakuya, Shinji and Ukitake and his lieutenants.

"Captain Commander wanted to find out who she was as quickly as possible, so he sent Unohana and a couple Captains to question her," Shinji said, shrugging. Ichigo scratched the back of his head.

"Well, I understand Unohana, but why are the rest of you here? It seems kind of like overkill, don't you think?" he asked. Renji snorted.

"That's what I thought, but have you tried feeling her reiatsu?" he asked. "It's all unbalanced. If she wakes up and starts trying to fight the way she did last time, she could do a ton of damage just by throwing her reiatsu around on accident."

"We're only here as a precaution," Ukitake said, smiling pleasantly. "Hopefully, things won't turn out that way, and we'll be unnecessary."

"Oh, I see, I guess," Ichigo said, turning his attention back to the girl. The question was on everyone's mind. Just who was she…?

"The healing is done, I'm waking her up now," Unohana said. There were various acknowledgements, and the captain nodded before using her kido to gently wake the girl up.

The girl blinked, then opened her eyes wide and sat straight up. She looked around in a panic, reaching for her missing zanpakuto.

"Calm down, you're alright," Urahara said, and the girl's head whipped around to look at him. She panted for a few moments, looked scared as all hell, and then her eyes fell on Ichigo. He flinched as she stared, and gradually she calmed down. Then after a moment, she glared.

"Who are you?" she demanded. Everyone stopped.

"Who am I?" Ichigo asked. "Shouldn't that be my line? I mean, you seemed to know me when you first showed up."

"No! That was…" the girl sighed in frustration, covering her eyes with her hand. "I mistook you for someone else, okay?"

"Who? I don't know a lot of guys named Kurosaki with this hair color," Ichigo said, starting to get irritated.

"Ichigo…" Rukia said, a warning. Ichigo sighed, and the girl looked at Rukia. She pointed.

"And you! Who are you, and why do you like Kuchiki-san?" she asked. Rukia blinked.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what you mean," she said. "I'm Kuchiki Rukia."

"No! You can't be! That's-!"

"Don't raise your voice to a member of the Kuchiki family like that," Byakuya said. The girl had to twist to see him. When she looked at him and Unohana, her eyes grew impossible wide and she scrambled away.

"No… but… you two are…"

"Please, young miss, calm down…" Ukitake said from where he was seated. The girl turned to stare at him.

"Ukita… no! No, this… this isn't real!" she yelled, pulling her knees to her chest and burying her head in them. "It… it's just a dream… or… or one of Aizen's illusions…"

Everyone in the room flinched at the name. Slowly, like approaching a wounded animal, Ichigo got up and crouched in front of the girl.

"Aizen was defeated," he said. The girl flinched.

"You're lying, that's just what you want me to believe," she said, muffled. Ichigo sighed in irritation.

"Listen, I almost lost all my shinigami powers beating that guy, I should know that it happened," he said. The girl very slowly titled her head up just enough to look his in the eye.

"You defeated him? When?" she asked. Ichigo blinked, then thought.

"After he'd fused with the Hogyoku and was trying to destroy Karakura," he said. The girl paused a moment, seeming conflicted. She opened her mouth, then closed it again. She considered a moment more before asking her next question.

"And what about Grimmjow Jeagerjaques?" she asked. Ichigo's eyes widened marginally in surprise.

"I defeated him before I beat Aizen," Ichigo said. The girl bit her lip.

"Why?"

"Because he was working for Aizen…?" Ichigo said, not sure what the girl was after. She seemed to debate a moment before uncurling slightly.

"And you've never met me before?" she asked. Ichigo blinked.

"No," he said. "Should I have?"

The girl sighed.

"I don't know."

"Who are you?" Ichigo asked. The girl glanced around the room. Everyone's eyes were on her. She returned her gaze to Ichigo.

"My name is Tiamut Bast, revizard and a fukutaichou of the resistance," she said.

"The resistance?" Ichigo asked, shifting as Urahara moved to sit next to him.

"The resistance against who?" the shopkeeper asked. The girl fixed them both with a hard stare.

"The resistance against Sosuke Aizen."

"Get real," Renji said, making everyone jump in surprise.

"I'm serious!" Tiamut said, glaring.

"We already said Aizen was defeated, so how could you expect us to believe that?" Renji continued, crossing his arms.

"I'm telling the truth, dammit!" Tiamut yelled, slamming her fist into the ground hard enough to break through the floor.

"Alright, let's just calm down…" Urahara said, looking at the hole in consternation.

"He fucking started it!" Tiamut yelled, pointing at Renji. The redhead flinched, then glared.

"I was just asking how you expected us to believe something so stupid!"

"So, what? You just assume someone you just met is lying?" Tiamut stood, all five foot two inches of her. Renji moved to glare down at her.

"I'm not just gonna believe some bullshit-"

"Abarai."

Renji flinched, then looked over his shoulder at Byakuya. The man had a look on his face that let the redhead immediately know he was in trouble.

"Yes, taichou…?"

"Do not engage in such childish behavior," the captain said. Renji frowned, but backed off.

"Yes, Kuchiki-taichou."

"…I kind of see it now," Tiamut said, looking at Byakuya as if seeing someone else. The captain looked back, but said nothing.

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked. Tiamut flinched, then shook her head.

"Nothing," she said, sitting down and looking around the room again. She was still wary, but far less tense than she had been.

"You mentioned a revizard," Shinji said, drawing the attention of the room. "What did you mean?"

"Well, it's short for 'reverse-vizard'," Tiamut said, looking bored.

"Reverse… what do you mean?" Shinji asked, face flickering from shock to anger. Tiamut gave him a level stare.

"I'm an Arrancar that was infused with shinigami reiatsu."

"Impossible!" Shinji said, more in shock than anything. "Who would do such a thing…?"

"Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Szayel Apporo Granz," she said. "Szayel was the first one, and then they did it to me'n Grimmjow, so Kurosaki kicked them out cause they didn't ask us first and it hurt like a bitch, and then while they were exiled they did it to Ulquiorra, too."

"Wait, what do you mean 'Kurosaki kicked them out'…?" Ichigo asked. Tiamut sighed, trying not to look at anyone in the room while fidgeting.

"Kurosaki Ichigo is the leader of the resistance," she said. "Under him are Kuchiki Rukia-taichou, Ukitake Jyuushiro-taichou, Grimmjow Jeagerjaques-taichou, Hirako Shinji-taichou, Urahara Kisuke-taichou and Abarai Renji-taichou. Under them are me, Matsumoto Rangiku-fukutaichou, Ichimaru Gin-fukutaichou, Aikawa Love-fukutaichou, Outoribashi Roujuurou-fukutaichou and Ulquiorra Schiffer-fukutaichou."

"What about the rest of the Gotei 13?' Ukitake asked, surprising everyone. The man wore a serious expression, and Tiamut glanced at him then shook her head.

"What? What does that mean?" Renji asked.

"Abarai-"

"Are you saying they all died?" Renji continued, ignoring his captain. Everyone was silent, waiting for Tiamut's answer. The girl took a deep breath, but kept her gaze at the ground.

"Yes. Where I'm from, those are the only members of the Gotei 13 that survived Aizen's attack."


	2. Alterverse

"Let me go! You fucker, I need to get back out there! I need to-"

"Jeagerjaques-taichou, please, calm down…" Kurosaki Yuzu, now fifteen years old, stood blocking the door that lead out of Urahara's shop. She held her hands up, trying to be pacifying. Grimmjow struggled against the hold of Karin and Jinta, badly injured with half his face covered in blood. Despite his obviously weakened state, Karin and Jinta were panting and sweating trying to hold him back.

"Calm down? Calm down! Fucking Tiamut is out there beat up as hell and you want me to clam down?" Grimmjow demanded, continuing to struggle. "If I can just get to her-"

"You will be in the same situation she is."

Grimmjow paused, but Karin and Jinta didn't relax quite yet. Yuzu looked over the taller man's shoulder.

"Ulquiorra-fukutaichou…" she said in surprise. Ulquiorra stepped into the room, and Grimmjow didn't move an inch. The dark-haired man put a hand on Grimmjow's shoulder.

"Come back and let me heal your injuries, or you will be of no use to her even if you do manage to find her," he said, then turned and walked back. Grimmjow panted a moment, then straightened slowly. Karin and Jinta tentatively released him. The revizard captain stood a moment, then spat and turned on his heel. When he had left the room for a few moments, the three collectively sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness that's over…" Yuzu said.

"Can you work faster?" Grimmjow complained. Ulquiorra impassively continued healing the taller man's injuries.

"If I work faster, I will wear myself out, and then I won't be able to heal anyone else," he said.

"Like you care," Grimmjow said, looking off to the side. Ulquiorra's eyes flicked up. In a moment, he forced Grimmjow to face him so he could heal the cut on the side of his head.

"Kurosaki does," Ulquiorra said without a hint of inflection. Grimmjow flinched, then sighed.

"You don't have to heal all of them, I've had worse," he said.

"I am aware," Ulquiorra said. "I haven't been healing all of them."

"Bastard…" Grimmjow said, but it was halfhearted at best. The two flinched when the door to the makeshift medical room was opened. When they saw it was Ichigo, they relaxed.

"I heard about what happened," Kurosaki said. Ulquiorra looked between the two men, then got up and left quietly. Neither seemed to notice.

"… sorry, I guess," Grimmjow said. Ichigo shook his head.

"Don't apologize, I understand," he said. "If it were Yuzu or Karin…"

"Yeah…"

For some long moments, no one spoke.

"So what happened?" Grimmjow asked. Ichigo sighed.

"Aizen was trying to follow Tiamut through the garganta back here. She caught on to it, and Shinji and Urahara tried to redirect it but… it looks like Tiamut had the same idea, and the result caused a flux in the time space, sending her to an unknown location."

"Is that how Urahara put it?" Grimmjow asked. Ichigo sighed again.

"That obvious?"

"If I don't understand it, I doubt you did."

"Well, basically, as Shinji put it, they were trying to move Tiamut from point A to point B. Shinji and Urahara tried to get her to point C, but she tried to force her way out of the garganta to point D. When the paths to points B, C and D hit, it sent her spiraling off to point X."

"Wait… why X?"

"It stands for an unknown variable."

"But I mean, why not E? Doesn't that make more sense?"

"I'm quoting. Taking it up with Shinji if you want."

"Whatever. So… we have no idea where she is?"

"No."

"And she could be out there, all alone, dying, right now?"

"… it's a possibility."

"And you expect me to just sit here?"

"I know it's a lot to ask," Ichigo said. He held up a hand to stop Grimmjow from speaking. "If it were me, I'd be doing the same thing you are. But rushing out without a plan, without even knowing where she is, or how to get there-"

"This is bullshit!" Grimmjow said, jumping to his feet. He glared, and Ichigo met his gaze levelly. "If it were Karin or Yuzu, you'd already be out there searching every damn dimension you could find regardless of whether or not you knew where they were!"

"Grimmjow-"

"No, don't fucking lie to me!" Grimmjow said, grabbing Ichigo by the front of his shihakusho and hauling him to his feet. "Would you or would you not be out there right now?"

"Jeagerjaques-taichou!" Ichigo said, glaring. Grimmjow grit his teeth, then pushed Ichigo away. He made to storm out, throwing the door open. "You are not to leave the shop. That's an order."

"Fuck you," Grimmjow spat, tearing down the hallway. Ichigo sighed, putting a hand to his forehead. He had expected as much, but he had hoped to be wrong just this once.

"Kurosaki."

Ichigo looked to see Ulquiorra standing to one side of the door. Ichigo sighed again, then walked out of the room. Ulquiorra watched him a moment before stepping in and closing the door behind him.

Grimmjow dropped straight through the hole to the underground training facility, ignoring the ladder. He stalked through the camp for the survivors of Aizen's takeover, while everyone tried not to catch his eye.

"Oi, Jeagerjaques-"

"Fuck off," Grimmjow said, brushing past Gin. The shinigami watched him a moment, then sighed and shrugged. The revizard didn't notice, continuing on into the vast underground space. He came to a door in the wall, and jabbed numbers into the keypad next to it.

"Welcome, Jeagerjaques-taichou," it was Urahara's automated voice that came from the keypad. "Where would you like to go?"

"The waterfall," Grimmjow snapped, and after a moment there was a click as the door unlocked.

"When you want to return, simply-"

Grimmjow shut the door, cutting off the rest of the recorded message. He moved to the center of another underground space; this was a smaller dimension tacked on to the one containing Urahara's shop. As they found isolated areas that Aizen hadn't destroyed yet, the shopkeeper and Shinji would add them in in order to preserve them. They were also the only way anyone could train while the camp was in the underground facility.

The revizard glared at the massive waterfall in front of him. The entire space was comprised of a few miles of jungle, with a mid-sized waterfall in the center. Drawing his sword, Grimmjow leap on the rocks to stand directly under the fall's flow. He proceeded to thrash the water by going through various sequences, but it soon dissolved into violent, erratic slashes, most of which hitting the rocks behind the fall.

"We had to convince him to stay, too, you know."

Grimmjow froze, mid-swing, then lowered his sword and turned around. Urahara was smiling behind his fan, sitting on dry rock a few feet down.

"…what?" he asked, panting. Urahara snapped the fan shut.

"We had to convince Ichigo not to leave, either," he said. "He was all gun-ho about going to save Tiamut, giving me and Shinji an earful for it, but it wouldn't do any good, you know?"

"… che," Grimmjow said, sheathing his sword and ignoring the question. Urahara gave his fellow captain an apologetic look.

"People think the worst feeling is failing to do what they want," he said. Grimmjow looked at him sidelong, and Urahara looked into the distance. "But it's not. Being able to do nothing… that is much worse."

"… it's frustrating as hell," Grimmjow said, jumping down next to the older man. Urahara chuckled.

"Well, don't worry. Shinji-taichou and I will have her back as soon as possible," he said. Grimmjow seriously regarded the other man, then sighed.

"I know," he said. "I just-"

"I know," Urahara said. "Do what you can, and try not to think about it."

"… whatever," Grimmjow said, jumping down the waterfall in leaps and bounds. Urahara sighed, then shook his head as he opened his fan again.

"How did I get stuck with so many stubborn kids…?"

Grimmjow returned to the camp completely soaked. He walked through quietly, making his way to his own tent. At the entrance, he paused. He sighed. Then he pushed the flap back and walked in slowly.

"Hey… I'm sorry. Earlier…"

"It's fine."

"No, it's not," Grimmjow said seriously. From where he was looking over paperwork, Ichigo turned to meet his gaze. "I was angry, and I crossed the line."

"Grimmjow, it's fine," Ichigo said, just as serious. "I understand."

"…che," Grimmjow said, then smiled ruefully. "Are we gonna argue about apologies, or are you just gonna shut up and accept mine?"

"… alright, apology accepted," Ichigo said, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth as he returned to his paperwork. Grimmjow sighed, the smile disappearing. He walked further into the dark tent, specially made to block the light from outside. He sat back to back with Ichigo, and leaned against the other slightly. For a long time, they were quiet.

"Do you think she's ok?" Grimmjow asked. Ichigo paused, sighing so softly it was almost unnoticeable.

"She was raised by you, wasn't she?" he asked.

"That's not an answer."

"I know."

"…can you lie to me?"

"No." Ichigo shifted, and Grimmjow let the leader of the resistance turn. Strong hands wrapped around his waist, and Ichigo rested his forehead against the revizard's back. "But I can tell you the truth. Tiamut is a strong, stubborn as hell woman who won't die until she's good and ready to."

Grimmjow snorted softly, but didn't say anything.

Urahara sighed.

"You weren't expecting to find her in one night, were you?" Akon asked.

"Easy for you to say," Shinji said, frowning. "You don't have two punks kids jumping down your throat."

"I think they'll calm down now," Urahara said, smiling. Shinji rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, until something else goes wrong," he said. He glared at the screen in front of him. "Why did she have to try and fix things herself…?"

"It's in her nature," Urahara replied. "At least she's not here…"

"We don't know if she's somewhere worse," Akon pointed out. Shinji shifted his glare to the one armed lab assistant.

"Aren't you cheery?" the captain said. Akon shrugged.

"I'm realistic," he replied. Urahara chuckled.

"Sometimes being cheery is more important," he said, standing. The other two looked at him. "I'm going get some fresh air."

"If Jeagerjaques or Kurosaki even think about getting close to here, kick their asses out," Shinji said, returning to his screen. Urahara simply pulled out his fan, striding out of the tent housing the remnants of the research department's work. He walked for a few steps before turning to look over his shoulder.

"And if you decide to give us any trouble, I'll just tell Grimmjow you've been sleeping with his sister," he said, smiling. After a moment, Ulquiorra stepped out of the shadows.

"I haven't been," he said, keeping pace with the captain.

"I know that," Urahara said. "It might take Jeagerjaques-taichou sometime to realize it, though."

"… you are an interesting man," Ulquiorra said, face never showing emotion.

"As are you," Urahara replied. "Sulking in the shadows instead of simply asking if we'd found her yet."

"Would you rather I were beating down the door to run off to nowhere?" Ulquiorra asked. Urahara chuckled.

"I suppose not. You could still ask," the man said. Ulquiorra made no response.

"Schiffer-fukutaichou, could you come see to Ukitake-taichou?" a former member of the medical squad asked, jogging up to them.

"I will be there momentarily," Ulquiorra said. He inclined his head to Urahara. "Until later, Urahara-taichou."

"Until later," Urahara said, amused at the level of formality. As Ulquiorra left with the younger shinigami, the shopkeeper sighed and shook his head. "So many stubborn kids…"


	3. Cannonverse 2

"So your name is Tiamut Bast," Rukia asked. Tiamut, looking bored, drummed her fingers against the table.

"For the one hundredth time, yes," she said. Rukia glared. After a full night's rest, the captains had decided to have Rukia fill out a full report on the mysterious revizard. However, with the girl's hallow reiatsu and vehement refusal to go anywhere near Mayuri-taichou, there was no reason for them to bring her to Seireitei. So Rukia had traveled back to Urahara's shop. The former shinigami had loaned the two a room in the back, where Rukia was conducting her interview. Compared to the day before, Tiamut was much less cooperative.

"And you come from another dimension," Rukia continued.

"I guess," Tiamut said, throwing her hand up briefly before drumming the table again.

"Will you please stop that?" Rukia asked, writing down the girl's answers. Tiamut huffed a sigh, but pulled her hand back.

"How long is this gonna take?" she asked. She'd been staring at the door since the interview began.

"It won't take long if you cooperate," Rukia replied. Tiamut scowled.

"I don't do this paperwork shit," she said. "There are so many better thing to do with my time…"

"Bast-san, we're only trying to help," Rukia said, trying to keep her own temper in check.

"And I already told you everything I know, okay?" Tiamut said. "You know what, fuck this. I need train."

"What? Where are you going? You can't just-" Rukia stood as Tiamut jumped up and headed to the door. The purple-haired revizard grinned over her shoulder.

"If you can beat me, I'll come back," she said. Rukia gaped, then grimaced as Tiamut waltzed away. She didn't come to fight. But, she needed to get the paperwork done before she could return to Seireitei, and if the only way to do it was to teach this upstart a lesson, then so be it.

Rukia followed Tiamut to Urahara's underground training ground. The shopkeeper joined them as well, seeming more curious than anything else. Tiamut skipped to the center, then whirled on her heel. Her feral grin was familiar as she squared off against the older woman. Rukia sighed, drawing Sode No Shirayuki.

"When you are ready," Rukia said. Tiamut snorted, then moved.

Rukia barely had time to bring her zanpakuto up to block the kick aimed for her head. Tiamut twisted and used the blade to jump away. She spun in the sand, sweeping at Rukia's feet. The shinigami jumped to avoid it, turning her sword to bring it down on the revizard. Tiamut jumped back, then ran to the side and come in at Rukia's side. Drawing her zanpakuto, Tiamut slashed, forcing Rukia to twist and parry. Tiamut twisted their blades around each other, stepping forward to aim a punch at Rukia's face. The shinigami ducked, then pushed up to get Tiamut off balance. Rukia simultaneously twisted the sword out of the girl's grip. Tiamut did a back flip to keep her feet, and then jumped forward in a ball, barreling into Rukia's torso.

Tiamut twisted to kick off, forcing Rukia to drop Sode No Shirayuki at the same time. Rukia rolled to her feet, panting. She watched Tiamut warily, and the girl returned the look with a grin. Taking a risk, Rukia went for her zanpakuto. Tiamut dove at the same time, barely missing kicking Rukia in the back as the shinigami grabbed her sword and rolled to her feet. Tiamut took the opportunity to grab her zanpakuto as well. The two faced off again, but this time Rukia watched the girl with intensity. Tiamut suddenly sighed.

"What?" Rukia asked.

"Well, it's just," Tiamut started, and before Rukia could move, the girl had moved behind her. "This is too easy."

Rukia whirled, swinging her zanpakuto, but Tiamut grabbed her wrist and put her sword to Rukia's throat. She frowned, then let the shinigami go.

"I win, I guess," she said, walking off. She looked at the shopkeeper. "Oi, what about you?"

"Hm? Me? But I'm just a humble, sexy shopkeeper," he said. Tiamut made a face.

"Eh? What's that?" she asked. "My ears are specially trained to filter out lies; all I heard was shopkeeper."

"Oh, you think you're clever, don't you?" Urahara asked, chuckling. Tiamut grinned.

"Come on, one round won't kill you," she asked. Urahara looked between the revizard and the shinigami.

"What deal did you make with Kuchiki-san to get her to fight with you?" he asked. Tiamut blinked.

"Eh? Well, I said I'd be good and fill out all the paperwork she had…"

"Well, then…" Urahara said, stepping forward and folding his fan. "If I win, you must honor that promise."

"Che, whatever you say, old man," Tiamut said, pointing her sword at the shopkeeper. "Bring it on."

"Any family members?" Rukia asked. Tiamut, holding a bag of ice on her head, sighed softly.

"Grimmjow Jeagerjaques, brother," she said. Rukia glanced up. Tiamut stuck out her tongue. "Close enough."

"Alright," Rukia said, writing it down. "And how did you get here?"

"Pure fuckin' magic," Tiamut said. Rukia sighed.

"You can just say you don't know," she said. Tiamut rolled her eyes, but kept further comment to herself. Rukia glanced up at the girl from her writing. She wasn't surprised Urahara had won; of course not. What had surprised her, however, was that the man had had to work for it. Who was she, this girl who could keep up with such a powerful shinigami?

"Hey, you got more questions or what?" Tiamut asked, snapping Rukia from her thoughts.

"Ah, yes… you said as a revizard, you were infused with the reiatsu of shinigami, yes?" the woman asked. Tiamut blinked.

"Uh… yeah. So?" she asked.

"Can you tell me anything more specific?" Rukia asked. Tiamut opened her mouth, then scowled. She looked off to the side and huffed.

"I don't want to," she said. Rukia pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Bast-san-"

"Tiamut. No one fucking calls me Bast," Tiamut said. "Well, Schiffer does, but that's different."

"Fine, Tiamut," Rukia said. "I understand this may be difficult for you, but the Soul Society needs as much information as possible to-"

"Hitsugaya Toshiro."

"Eh? Hitsugaya-taichou?" Rukia asked, surprised. Tiamut heaved a sigh.

"I don't know how those bastards did what they did, but I do know this…" and here she looked at Rukia. "I was infused with the reiatsu of Hitsugaya Toshiro."

"Ah…" Rukia was too stunned to speak. Tiamut rolled her eyes and looked away.

"Grimmjow was infused with Kuchiki Byakuya's reiatsu, Schiffer was infused with Unohana Retsu's reiatsu, and Szayel was infused with Kyouraku Shunsui's reiatsu."

"…what?" Rukia finally found her voice, though it was feeble and broke in the middle.

"See, this is why I didn't want to tell you…" Tiamut said. Rukia cleared her throat, then swallowed.

"That… I don't understand… how could something like that be possible?" she asked. Tiamut gave her a look.

"Two mad scientists with free reign. You do the math," she said. Rukia sighed. Then she grabbed her report and stood.

"I need to report this right away," Rukia said. Tiamut nodded, laying back on the floor.

"Figured as much…" she said, yawning. Rukia watched her a moment, then sighed and left the room. She opened a gate and swiftly returned to Seireitei. Her first order of business was to report to her captain.

"Ah, Kuchiki-san, you have returned," Ukitake said, smiling warmly as she entered. Rukia sighed.

"Early, I fear," she said. Ukitake blinked, then his gaze grew hard.

"What happened?" he asked. The woman proceeded to explain what Tiamut had told her. Ukitake nodded, then thought. After endless, quiet moments, he seemed to come to a decision.

"I'm going to report this to Captain Commander," he said, rising. "He'll decide what to do from there."

Rukia nodded, leaving as her captain did. It was an hour later that a meeting of the Gotei 13 was called. The lieutenants met in a separate room, where Rukia reluctantly told them what the meeting was for. Meanwhile, inside the meeting, Ukitake gave his report to the other captains.

"Shit, I didn't think it would something like that…" Shinji said, crossing his arms.

"Well, I guess it makes sense…" Kyouraku said. "Since it would be impossible for hallows to make shinigami reiatsu on their own."

"Well, yeah, when you put it that way…" Shinji conceded.

"It's till unforgivable!" Kensei said.

"There isn't much we can do about it, though," Roujuurou pointed out. "It's hardly the girl's fault this happened to her."

"If anything, you should blame to person who did it to her…" Kyouraku said, mostly to himself. Everyone paused, then slowly turned their heads to look at Mayuri. The man snorted.

"I'll admit it's an interesting experiment, but I can hardly believe it's anything close to stable," he said. "Given the circumstances of this supposed 'resistance', I could see why I might dabble in such a thing, but without such an extreme situation, I might dissect such a creature, but I wouldn't create one."

"…that's so comforting," Shinji said, eye twitching slightly. Then something occurred to him. "Hunh, what do you think of all this, Hitsugaya-taichou?"

The room grew quiet as they realized Hitsugaya had yet to speak. Suddenly, all eyes were on the little captain. Toshiro seemed to be lost in thought, and it took a moment before he realized he'd been addressed. He looked up at everyone in the room.

"What?" he asked.

"I asked what you thought of all this," Shinji said.

"Oh," Hitsugaya said. He looked around the room, then shrugged. "I reserve my opinion."

"What?" Kensei asked. "How can you say that? She has your reiatsu!"

"And I haven't even seen her yet, so I won't judge her just because of something some other Mayuri did," he said, irritated.

"Then why don't we set up a meeting or something?" Ryouraku said, drawing the attention of the room. "I mean, we should probably ask her, too, but I don't see why we shouldn't…"

"Hitsugaya-taichou?" Ukitake asked. "It's your choice."

"… fine," he said, looking off to the side. In fact, he wasn't sure he wanted to meet this mysterious person claiming to have his reiatsu, but the captains who had met her seemed to believe she was telling the truth, and he would take their word. Besides, there was still a part of him that wondered if she were really telling the truth or not, and there was only one way to find out…

Rukia returned to Urahara's shop at the completion of the meeting. She was accompanied by Rangiku, who was to confirm that Tiamut did, in fact, have Hitsugaya's reiatsu. Rukia sighed, knocking on the front door. She hoped the girl was in a better mood now than she had been earlier…

"Hm? Ah, Kuchiki-san, Matsumoto-san, are you here to see Tiamut-chan?" Urahara asked, opening the door himself. Rukia blinked. That, in itself, was an odd occurrence.

"Yes, we are," Rukia said. Urahara chuckled.

"Ah, well, you see… she kind of… ran off to Heuco Mundo…?"

"What?" Rukia asked. Urahara sighed, ushering them in.

"I thought you were watching her…" Rangiku said. Urahara shrugged.

"I didn't know she had the ability to open garganta on her own," he said. "Or, rather, she had a device on her that could open them…"

"Huh? What kind of device?" Rangiku asked. Urahara pointed to his wrist.

"A type of special brace," he said. "Apparently it needed time to charge before she could use it again, or she probably would have left earlier…"

"Well, this is a mess," Rangiku said. "Now how am I supposed to figure out if she has Toshiro's reiatsu or not?"

"… I think we should go after her," Rukia said. Rangiku blinked.

"What? Do you already like her that much, Kuchiki-san?" she asked. Rukia sighed.

"She an obnoxious brat and a pain in the ass, but…" Rukia sighed. "She stuck in an unfamiliar world, separated from her only family and can't even do what she's been training to do. It's not so much that I like her that I understand."

"… well then, what are we waiting for?" Rangiku said, grinning. Urahara blinked in surprise, then smiled.

"Would you ladies mind if I tagged along?" he asked, leading the way to the underground training grounds. Rukia smiled.

"Not at all. Besides, she seems to like you more than me," she said, following.

"Why do you think she went there, anyways?" Rangiku asked. Rukia sighed.

"I have an idea…"

Inside Heuco Mundo, Tiamut sniffed. He was close. The reiatsu was weaker than she was used to, but since she had felt Byakuya's reiatsu before, she could distinguish Grimmjow's with minimal difficulty. She knew he wouldn't be the same. His reiatsu spoke as much. But…

She sighed, looking around. At least she could see what he was like, without….

She shook her head. No! She was not going to think like that!

Resolute, she kept walking. And, eventually, she found him. He was sitting against a tree, restlessly asleep. Tiamut opened her mouth to say something, then, slowly, closed it. For a while she stood and stared. Then, huffing a sigh, she turned and walked away.

Something things, she decided, were better left alone.

Or at least, it sounded better than 'I chickened out'.


	4. Alterverse 2

"Did you locate her yet, Tousen?" Aizen asked. He stood on the balcony of his tower, wearing a white suit while overlooking the ruins of the world he owned. Tousen moved to stand behind him.

"No. It appears she attempted to create a garganta from within a garganta," he said. Aizen, smiling, took a sip from his glass.

"Ah, so we couldn't track her to the base of the 'resistance'," he said, the last word lightly mocking. Tousen was silent a moment.

"It seems she was successful."

Aizen paused, then slowly turned. The pleasant smile didn't falter.

"Go on."

"We do not know the full details, but at the moment she activated her brace, there was a surge of power inside the garganta," Tousen said. "Ilforte reports seeing the other side for a few seconds before being repelled by the power of the garganta."

"And what did he see?" Aizen asked, taking another sip of his drink.

"…Kurosaki Ichigo as he was before your reign," Tousen said. Aizen froze. Then he chuckled, letting the drink rest in his hand. There was no rail to the balcony, or he might have set it down.

"And you believe this?" he asked. Tousen shook his head.

"No. But the recording device he was wearing caught the image as well."

"I want to see this footage."

"Of course," Tousen said, pulling a small screen from his robes. He handed it over to former captain, and Aizen watched without comment. Indeed, the few seconds of film showed that idiotic revizard activating her brace, and there was a surge of darkness. The very air around the girl seemed to shimmer, then rip as if being clawed apart. The light was blinding for a moment, but then it toned down enough to see as the girl fell through the hole, a teenaged Kurosaki Ichigo standing with a shocked expression. However… Aizen replayed the tape, face blank. Yes, the second time through confirmed it. His shihakusho was different, and not even the Ichigo currently resisting him wore a robe like that.

Suddenly, Aizen smiled.

"Tell Ilforte he is to report to me right away," he said. Tousen nodded, then turned to enter the tower. Aizen turned, once again admiring the view of his world. He didn't have to wait long before the nervous Arrancar forced himself to walk onto the balcony.

"You asked for me, Aizen-sama?" he asked. Aizen decided not to look at his minion. Ever since his ascension, the vast majority of them acted pathetically skittish around him, and he wanted his questions answered swiftly as possible.

"Yes, about your report on the revizard girl going through an alternate garganta..." Aizen started. He heard Ilforte gulp. "Tell me, what did you sense about the Kurosaki Ichigo in the portal?"

"Ah, what did I…? I don't understand, Aizen-sama," he said. Aizen shook his head. Of course not, he wasn't at that level.

"Was there anything different about him? Besides his age," the overlord asked. Ilforte looked to the side, thinking.

"Not really… stronger. More like… weaker, if I had to say anything, but it was hard to tell with all the energy flying around," he said. Aizen nodded.

"That is all," he said, turning to dismiss the Arrancar. Then he tilted his head. "Ah, you're Szayel's brother, aren't you?"

"…y-yes, Aizen-sama," Ilforte said, taking an involuntary step back. Aizen tossed his drink over the edge of the balcony, taking a step forward to match. Ilforte stared in horror, sweat forming at his temples.

"Did you know there's a mole in this tower, Ilforte?" Aizen asked. Ilforte was frozen in place as the former shinigami moved to stand only inches away from him. His breath was shallow; Aizen was letting some of his reiatsu leak, and it was suffocating.

"…n-no, Aizen-sama," he said. Aizen kept his pleasant smile, and Ilforte gasped.

"How unfortunate," Aizen said casually. Blood leaked from one corner of Ilforte's mouth; a bloody gash went from his sternum to his naval. "I was hoping you would be of more use, since you're the most obvious member of the group. But no matter, I'll weed the rest of you out soon enough."

Ilforte's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell backwards. Aizen sighed, smiling as he adjusted his tie.

"Tousen, throw him into the void, would you?" he asked the air. Tousen appeared from the shadows, noncommittally kicking Ilforte's body over the side of the balcony. The man then approached Aizen, who leaned against his desk, fiddling with one of the resistance brace's. There were three more on the desk.

"These braces are really quite remarkable," Aizen said. "The combined efforts of Mayuri Kurotsuchi, Urahara Kisuke and Szayel Aporro Grantz. Even we haven't uncovered all their secrets yet."

"Aizen-sama?" Tousen said. Aizen turned the brace in his hands.

"We have discovered how to use them to create garganta, however, we still have yet to uncover the coordinates of their little dimension. No matter," he said. "Tousen, gather Nnoitra, Halibel, Tesra and Vega. I'm intrigued by what happened to the revizard nuisance, and would like to see if the experiment can be repeated."

"… yes, Aizen-sama," Tousen said, flash stepping from the room. Aizen waited patiently. It was Nnoitra and Tesra that arrived first; they must have been close.

"Tousen said you called?" Nnoitra asked, looking bored. Aizen thought nothing of it.

"Yes, I have a special mission for you," he said.

"Yeah? What's so special about it?" Nnoitra asked. Aizen tossed the brace to the Espada, and then a second one to his fraccion.

"Put those on. Your mission is actually twofold," Aizen said, watching as Nnoitra looked the brace over before slipping it on. "First, you are going to perform an experiment for me. You are going to activate a garganta from within a garganta. Don't worry, I've already set the coordinates."

"And the second part?" Nnoitra asked. Aizen tilted his head, still smiling.

"After completing the first task, you are going to eliminate Halibel and your fraccion," he said. Tesra flinched, but then composed himself. Nnoitra grinned.

"Fine with me," he said. Aizen nodded, and then Ggio Vega appeared. The Arrancar was given the primary mission, as was Halibel when she arrived.

"Now, Aizen said, leading the four unto the balcony. "Tesra, when you have completed your first mission, you are to kill Halibel and Vega. Vega, you are to kill Nnoitra and Tesra. Helibel is to kill Vega and Nnoitra."

"What? What bullshit is this?" Nnoitra asked. Aizen smiled, opening a garganta.

"Of you four, only two are loyal. However, at least one more is a sympathizer, and the other is a smuggler. This is a test of your loyalty. Whoever survives, wins," he said. Then he waved them to the garganta. "Now, on with your mission."

"… che, fuck," Nnoitra said, storming into the garganta. Tesra followed after.

"This seems like fun!" Vega said, skipping behind. Halibel gave Aizen a long look, then walked into the garganta. Aizen watched as they activated the garganta on the braces. No one bothered to hide their familiarity with the item. This was no test of loyalty; it was a death sentence. Aizen was not expecting them to return… at least not together, if at all.

Power poured out of the garganta as four holes ripped through like the inside of a thunderclap. He watched as the four Arrancar were pulled into their respective holes, all views of the world before he had taken over. Or so it would seem.

As the rips in the garganta closed, Aizen closed the original garganta. He turned and strode to his desk, sitting elegantly. He pulled a screen from the surface of the desk. When he powered it on, it showed four separate cameras. Aizen leaned back, watching the show begin.

Nnoitra sighed as he looked around. It looked like he was in Heuco Mundo. How. Wonderful.

"…what?"

Nnoitra flinched and whirled at the soft exclamation. Standing a ways off were a group of three he recognized. He narrowed his eyes. Something was… off. It was definitely Rukia, Urahara and Rangiku, but they seemed… weaker. And almost… younger?

And then they pulled out their swords. Oh, wonderful.

Halibel landed lightly on her feet. She looked around with a critical eye. She had no idea where she was, but it was next to a river. And… she took deep breath. Human world. She sighed, then started walking. She at least needed to get out of the open…

Vega landed in the middle of a dojo. He looked around, glad it was empty at least. Well, not really, since it was kind of boring, but it was probably better no one saw him… or that he hadn't landed on anyone. Except it was then the door to the dojo opened. Vega sighed in relief when he realized it was just some human.

"Hey, you!"

Vega flinched, then looked at the black haired chick again.

"I don't know what you think you're doing dressed up like that, but the dojo is closed, so scram!"

Vega blinked, then titled his head.

"You can see me?" he asked. The girl blinked.

"Of course I can, weirdo!" she said, aiming a kick at his head. Vega dodged.

"Huh, interesting," he said.

Tesra felt like he had been shot from a gun, and fell straight through a roof. He panted a moment, and sat up. Only to be greeted with a sword to his throat. He looked up to see Kenpachi-taichou grinning down at him.

"Huh, I could've sworn I killed you…" he said. Tesra felt his blood run cold. "And yet here you are, breaking into my office…"

* * *

so... guess i'll put this to a vote. who do you want to have the next chapter; nnoitra, tesra, vega or halibel?


	5. Canonverse 3

Halibel found herself in an abandoned building. She sat silently staring into the imaginary distance. Really, she was feeling the reiatsu around her. So many human souls… it made her hungry. It had been sometime since she had been able to feel this much reiatsu all at once; it was like the air was lousy with it. She could simply flick out her tongue and taste it, there was so much. But she wouldn't; it would go against her pride. Besides, having smuggled humans and shinigami to the resistance, her self-control was far better than that.

She turned her head. That reiatsu… Kurosaki Ichigo. It was less than the resistance leader she knew, that much was obvious. It was doubtful that he could be much use to her… however, given the circumstances, it seemed he was most likely aware of her current situation. And she wanted information; the more she had, the sooner she could get back.

Halibel rose, then flash stepped to Kurosaki's location. She watched from a nearby building. He was in class. Halibel didn't want to make a scene, so she merely waited. She knew she would have his attention soon enough, being so close. And, sure enough, Ichigo snapped his head to look out the window the moment he sensed her reiatsu. She didn't try to hide. The teen looked straight at her in surprise, and then his gaze hardened. Halibel stared back, waiting. Ichigo ran from the room, and the Arrancar sat as she waited. In a matter of moments, he appeared before her, now a shinigami.

"… what do you want?" he asked, Zangetsu in his hand. Halibel held up a hand.

"I came for information," she said. "Where is this place?"

"… what do you mean?" Ichigo asked. Halibel took a step forward.

"The girl revizard appeared to you here, didn't she?" she asked. Ichigo blinked, then his eyes widened in shock.

"You… you're from that other place! The one where Aizen took over!" he said. Halibel blinked languidly.

"Explain that statement," she said. Ichigo relaxed his stance, though he kept Zangetsu in his hand.

"Well, how did Urahara put it… this is something like a different dimension, I guess, where I beat Aizen before he could take over," he said.

"You?" Halibel asked. It was meant as a scoff, but her tone was off.

"Yeah, right after I beat Ulquiorra and Grimmjow… what?" Ichigo asked. Halibel's eyes had widen fractionally, and she was staring.

"You… fought Jeagerjaques?" she asked. Ichigo blinked in surprise.

"Yeah, he kind of had it in for me the whole time," he said. "… why? Is it different in your dimension or something?"

"…hm," Halibel said, surprise disappearing. Then she turned. "That is all I required."

"Hey-!" Ichigo started, but Halibel flash stepped away. Returning to the abandoned building, she sat once more. She considered what she had been told. A world where Aizen hadn't won… was such a thing really possible…? Or was he simply following a different plan than he had the first time… who could know? But this place…

Halibel looked out over the city. All those souls… was this place better than the one she had left? Had her fraccion… this time, had they survived? Leaning back, she decided to rest. In time, she would find her answers. In time…

Tesra stared up at Kenpachi, eyes wide. He breathed through his nose, trying to stay calm and fight back this overwhelming sense of dread. There was no way he could escape such a situation, absolutely…

"Wait, Ken-chan!"

Tesra blinked in surprise as Yachiru appeared on Kenpachi's shoulder.

"This guy came out of a weird garganta right now! Isn't that how that girl Ichigo found got here? Maybe they're from the same place!"

"… huh, guess you might be right," Kenpachi said, moving his sword from Tesra's throat. "Looks like you got lucky this time."

"Hey, Taichou, what was with that strange surge of reiatsu just now…?" Ikkaku asked, stepping into the room. Tesra looked over at him, and the shinigami reached for his zanpakuto. "An Arrancar-"

"Hey, go get Mayuri," Kenpachi said. "This guy might have something to do with the chick Ichigo found."

"Huh… you mean the revizard?" Ikkaku asked, still wary. Kenpachi snorted.

"What? Do you think I can't handle this? Get moving," Kenpachi said. Ikkaku jumped, then nodded and turned out the door. Tesra looked back at the shinigami captain. With a soft sigh, he looked at the ground. It looked like there was nothing else he could do at the time…

"Tell me, you happen to be friends with Kurosaki Ichigo, would you?" Vega asked, easily dodging the girl's punch.

"Huh? Ichigo? Why're you asking about him?" she asked, pausing in surprise.

"Oh, so you do know him," Vega said, smiling. "See, I was hoping he could help me out with something."

"Like what?" the girl asked, glaring and on guard. Vega chuckled.

"That's a nice look," he said. "If I didn't think it was a bad idea, I'd beat that off your face."

"What?" the girl asked, settling into a better stance. Vega grinned, then sighed and relaxed.

"Well, like I said, I think it would be a bad idea, so don't worry about it," he said, waving his hand. The girl stared in disbelief. Vega chuckled, then flash stepped to the door. "Maybe next time."

"Hey-!" the girl stared, but by the time she'd turned around, Vega was gone. She stared, wondering what the hell had just happened.

"Tatsuki-san!" Orihime said, running into the dojo. Tatsuki walked up to meet her.

"Huh? Orihime, did something happen?" she asked, putting her hands in her pocket. Orihime shook her head.

"No, you just forgot your bag in the classroom," Orihime said, handing it over.

"Oh, thanks," Tatsuki said, taking it from her friend. "Say, did you see some weird looking guy leaving here?"

"Huh? Uh, no, why?" Orihime asked. Tatsuki shrugged.

"Nah, don't worry about it," she said. "See you later, Orihime."

"Yeah," Orihime said, smiling as she left the dojo. Tatsuki sighed. Later, she would have to find Ichigo and ask him about it…

"How are you alive?" Rukia asked, glaring at Nnoitra. The Arrancar drew his sword, but made no move.

"What d'ya mean?" he asked, returning the glare.

"Kenpachi killed you," Rangiku said, taking a step to the side. Nnoitra raised a brow.

"Really? Cause I feel pretty alive right now," he said, settling into a ready stance.

"Perhaps we should all calm down…" Urahara said, the only one of the four who didn't look about to jump into battle.

"How can you say that?" Rukia asked. "He's-!"

"Wearing the same brace our errant revizard has," Urahara said. Rukia and Nnoitra flinched.

"So that brat Tiamut did end up here?" the Arrancar asked, still on guard.

"…you know Tiamut?" Rukia asked, cautiously lowering her zanpakuto. Nnoitra snorted.

"Well, we've only been fighting viciously for years now," he said. Rukia's blade was back up in an instant.

"Then Aizen sent you!" she said, glaring again. Nnoitra frowned.

"Yeah, I guess, but-" he said. Rukia didn't give him a chance to finish as she and Rangiku charged simultaneously. Nnoitra growled, raising his blade straight up-

-only to have it crash back down, splaying sand everywhere and causing the two shinigami to halt. Tiamut stood on the odd blade, and looked up at Nnoitra.

"What happened?" she asked. Nnoitra blinked, then scowled.

"We got fucking caught, what the fuck did you think happened?" he asked. Tiamut growled.

"That's not what I meant you fucker," she said.

"Ya know, standing on people's swords barefoot is a great way to get cut," Nnoitra sneered.

"Will you answer the fucking question!?" Tiamut demanded.

"Will you get the fuck off my sword, bitch?" Nnoitra asked. Tiamut growled, but then back flipped off the weapon. "Cause that wasn't completely unnecessary."

"Fuck you, now answer the question," Tiamut said, crossing her arms.

"Aizen caught on to me, Vega and Halibel, so he had us to the same fucking idiotic thing you did to get rid of us," Nnoitra said. "He sent Tesra here, too. Guess he was the sympathizer or the what the fuck ever."

"Why? There are tons of easier ways to get rid of a bug like you," Tiamut said. Nnoitra glared.

"How the fuck should I know?" he said.

"Wait… what's going on here?" Rukia asked, drawing the bickering pair's attention. "You just said the two of you had been fighting…"

"Yeah, well if you'd fucking let me finish, I could have told you that wasn't the whole story," Nnoitra said, rolling his eyes.

"Nnoitra's a mole for the resistance," Tiamut said. She didn't sound happy about it. "Though it's probably more like a double agent."

"Are you questioning me, bitch?" Nnoitra asked, grip tightening on his sword.

"Maybe we should get to the reason we came here," Urahara said, stepping up to the group. Nnoitra and Tiamut glared at each other a little longer before turning their attention to the shopkeeper.

"Matsumoto-san?" Urahara asked. Rangiku looked around, then shrugged and sheathed her zanpakuto. Cupping her chin, she marched up to Tiamut, leaning in close enough to make the girl lean back.

"Uh…" Tiamut said, brows furrowing. Rangiku said nothing, just giving the girl a hard stare. After a few moments, her eyes widened and she jumped back.

"It… it's true…" the woman said, seeming a little shaky. "It's definitely Toshiro's reiatsu."

"You still didn't believe me?" Tiamut accused, glaring at Rukia and Urahara.

"We believed you," Urahara said, holding up a hand in a pacifying gesture. "But not all the Gotei 13 have met you, Tiamut."

"…che," Tiamut said, looking away.

"Well, now that that's settled," Rangiku said, recovering. " We just have to set up the meeting."

"What meeting?" Tiamut asked, glaring suspiciously. Rangiku blinked.

"The meeting between you and Toshiro, of course," she said. Tiamut gaped, then glared.

"No."

"What?" Rukia asked.

"I refuse," Tiamut said, crossing her arms and looking away.

"But… don't you want to-" Rangiku tried.

"No."

"Tiamut, be reasonable," Rukia said. Tiamut snarled, still looking away.

"I am being reasonable," she said. "I don't fucking want to meet him."

"Oh, dear," Urahara said, as Rangiku scratched the back of her neck.

"Tiamut," Rukia started, moving into the girl's line of sight. "Your reiatsu is terribly unstable. Maybe meeting with Hitsugaya-taichou can-"

"I'm not fucking meeting with him!" Tiamut screamed, causing everyone to flinch. "Get over it!"

"Haven't you been looking for a way to stabilize your reiatsu?" Nnoitra asked, tone reflecting his boredom. Tiamut whirled on him.

"Mind your own fucking business!" she said. Nnoitra snorted.

"Touchy," he said. "Ya gonna use your ban kai on me?"

"Fuck you!" Tiamut said, making to storm off. She was blocked by Urahara. She glared up at him, but he merely smiled.

"Listen, Tiamut-chan, why don't we all discuss this calmly at the shop?" he asked. He held up a hand to stop her protests. "If you are truly that determined not to meet with Hitsugaya-taichou, no one is going to force you. I promise."

"… fine," Tiamut said, glaring at the ground. Urahara smiled happily, and Nnoitra sneered.

"So even in whatever weird place this is she rolls over for the old fucker…" he said, sounding disgusted. Tiamut growled, turning on him.

"I'll rearrange your fucking face! Not that you aren't ugly enough as it is," she said, glaring. Nnoitra rolled his eyes.

"I'm not fucking dealing with this right now," he said, walking away.

"Where are you going?" Urahara asked. Nnoitra snorted.

"Sorry, was I invited to the shinigami party?" he asked. Urahara shrugged.

"I did say all of us," he said. Nnoitra spat.

"Don't hold your breath. If ya need me, you know where to find me," he said, continuing to walk off.

"I hope he runs into your Grimmjow and gets his head torn off," Tiamut muttered.

"Now then, Tiamut-chan, if you wouldn't mind showing me how your brace works…" Urahara asked. Tiamut snorted, but brought the brace up and tapped a few of the buttons running on the sides. Then she pressed the circle sitting on top of the back of her hand, activating the garganta.

"Ta-fucking-da," the girl said, sulking through the portal.

"Astounding…" Urahara said, as he, Rangiku and Rukia followed her though. The garganta closed behind them, and they were in the back room of Urahara's shop. "Tell me, who made that device?"

"You, Mayuri and Szayel," Tiamut said, shrugging.

"It can't be storing enough energy to open the garganta by itself, can it?" Urahara continued, tilting is head to eye the device. Tiamut held it up so he could see it better.

"It doesn't operate that way," she said.

"Then how does it produce a garganta?" Urahara asked, tapping a few of the buttons. Tiamut sighed.

"It acts like a switch," she said, catching the man's attention. "Consider the space-time continuum to be a giant circuit board. A regular garganta amplifies a particular space-time circuit, causing the circuits on the way to the target to overload. But, unlike an actual circuit board, the energy keeps going, creating a direct line between the space-time circuit and the target circuit. Rather than amplifying a signal, the brace simply breaks the path between the space-time circuit and the target, creating a direct path with exponentially less energy."

"So then does the brace have a radar to detect all these space-time circuits?" Urahara asked, cupping his chin.

"Well, yeah, no shi-" Tiamut paused, blinking as she noticed Rukia and Rangiku gawking. The girl blushed, glaring. "I mean, how the hell should I know about all that machine shit? Besides, we came back to talk about something else, right?"

"Er, right," Rukia said, composing herself. "So, why don't you want to meet Histugaya-taichou?"

"Ugh!" Tiamut cried, sitting and burying her face in her hands. "I forgot I didn't want to talk about that either!"

"Well, it's not like it makes any sense," Rangiku said, examining her nails. "All we want is a reason, ya know."

"Does it matter?" Tiamut asked with a huff, shifting to rest her chin in her palm. "Reason or not, I'm not gonna meet him."

"But what if-" Rukia started.

"No," Tiamut said, scowling. "This is a nonnegative issue."

"… do you mean nonnegotiable?" Urahara asked. Tiamut growled.

"That to," she said, turning away from the shinigami. Urahara and Rukia sighed in unison. The shopkeeper indicated that the woman should follow him out, but he looked in the room once more before closing the door.

"If you need anything, be sure to call," he said. Tiamut flipped him off, and he snorted before shutting the door behind him.

"So, what do we do?" Rangiku asked. Urahara shrugged.

"Nothing, for now," he said, walking towards the front of the shop.

"Nothing! But we can't just let her go around with her reiatsu all over the place like that!" Rangiku protested, keeping pace.

"Yes, but if you try to force her, she'll only oppose the idea more vehemently," Urahara said.

"So what are you suggesting?" Rukia asked. Urahara smiled ruefully.

"Just let her be, for now," he said. "I think, when she's ready, she'll agree to meet with him. She just needs time to get used to the idea."

"But do we have time?" Rangiku asked. "If she loses control over such volatile reiatsu-"

"You can leave that to me," Urahara said, turning to face the two women. "I'll keep her out of trouble, you two just report back."

"Fine," Rangiku pouted. Urahara nodded, smiling happily as he watched the two women open a portal and return to Seireitei. Once the portal closed, Rangiku immediately turned to Rukia. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Um, no?" Rukia said, arching a brow. Rangiku grinned mischievously.

"That we set up a surprise meeting, of course!" she said. Rukia's jaw dropped, then she shook her head.

"No, that's a horrible idea," she said, glaring in consternation. Rangiku sighed, throwing up her hands.

"Come on, Rukia," she said. "The girl's probably just shy or something. And, as clever as Urahara is, he can only watch out for her for so long, ya know?"

"First, that girl is anything but shy," Rukia said, crossing her arms. "And second, I trust Urahara. If he gets in over his head, he'll let us know. Besides, there has to be some reason she's so against meeting Hitsugaya-taichou."

"Then why wouldn't she tell us?" Rangiku challenged. Rukia sighed.

"Maybe it's personal," she said, expression softening. "She doesn't know us, Rangiku. How can you expect her to trust us with personal issues?"

"…I guess you have a point…" the other woman said, pouting. Rukia sighed again.

"So you won't try anything?" she asked, giving Rangiku an appraising look. The blonde sighed, waving her hand.

"Yeah, fine," she said.

"Really?" Rukia asked, leaning closer. Rangiku made a face.

"I promise," she said, and Rukia leaned away. "You sure you don't like this chick?"

"Not really," Rukia said, smiling as she walked away. "She's just kind of growing on me."

Rangiku smiled ruefully, then sighed once Rukia was out of earshot.

"Sorry, honey, but I don't think I can keep this promise."

And with that, she flash stepped to her and her captain's office.

"Toshirooo-oh?" she said as she burst in the door. She blinked. The office was empty.

"Ah! Matsumoto-fukutaichou!"

Rangiku turned to see one of the members of her division running up to her.

"What is it, Iie?" she asked. The man stopped about a foot away, coming to attention and saluting.

"Hitsugaya-taichou asked me to inform you that he was in a meeting with the other captains, ma'am, and that you should go to the lieutenant's meeting room upon your return."

"Why? What happened?" Rangiku asked. Iie shrugged.

"Ma'am, if I knew, I'd tell you," he said, dropping his salute. "But it probably has to do with whoever crashed through the 11th division's roof."

"What?" Rangiku asked, gawking. Iie shrugged again.

"Above my pay-grade, ma'am," he said, and saluted again before walking off. Matsumoto had been hoping the man would tire of the formalities for the past fifty years. It seemed she was still out of luck. With a sigh, she flash stepped to the center of Seireitei, entering the lieutenant's room quietly. Closing the door behind her, she was hardly noticed by her fellows, who were having a fierce argument.

"I don't care where the hell he came from, we shouldn't keep him here!" Renji said. "He's a hollow, for fuck's sake!"

"What's going on?" Rangiku asked, making the red head jumped and whirl.

"Oh, Rangiku, you're finally here," he said. Rangiku rolled her eyes.

"An Arrancar broke through the roof of the 11th division's headquarters," Rukia said.

"But it seems he's from the same alternate universe as Tiamut Bast," Kira added.

"Another one?" Rangiku said.

"It seems so," Rukia nodded.

"That's not all," Omaeda said, drawing the attention of the room. "I was walking by the 12th division, and I heard them say there were four energy surges at the same time that the Arrancar guy showed up."

"So, wait… that means there are four more people from Tiamut's dimension?" Rukia asked.

"I don't know, I got bored listening," Omaeda said, chomping on chips.

"Wait, but why are they all suddenly showing up here?" Renji said. "Shouldn't they be staying in their own dimension?"

"That's what we're trying to find out."

Everyone in the room flinched , turning to look as Kyouraku stood, smiling in the door.

"Don't look so shocked. I just came by to tell you the captain's meeting was over," he said.

"Thank you, Kyouraku-taichou," Rukia said. The man nodded, moving aside so that the lieutenants could file out.

"Ah, Kuchiki-fukutaichou, you'll also be escorting our unexpected guest to the human world," Kyouraku said. "To see if the lovely revizard knows him."

"Understood," Rukia said.

"Abarai, you should accompany her," Byakuya said, appearing behind Kyouraku.

"Yes, Kuchiki-taichou," Renji said, inclining his head to his captain. Byakuya continued on without a word, and everyone left the area, either to find their respective captain or to resume whatever work they had left for the meeting.

"Well, we'd better get to it…" Rukia said, and Renji nodded.

"Toshiro! There you are!" Rangiku said, bursting into the office. Toshiro sighed.

"Yes?" he asked, ready for anything. Rangiku smiled sweetly.

"Oh, nothing, I just wanted to talk about that meeting," she said. "You know, the one with the revizard that has your reiatsu?"

"So she does have my reiatsu," he said, though he still sounded unconvinced.

"Yup, I made sure of it!" Rangiku said. Toshiro gave her a careful look.

"And she agreed to meet with me?" he said. Rangiku nodded.

"Of course!" she said. Toshiro's eyes narrowed.

"And I can confirm this with Kuchiki-fukutaichou?" he asked. Rangiku flinched.

"Ah, well…" she said. Toshiro sighed.

"I'm not meeting with her unless she agrees, and I don't appreciate you lying to me," he said, glaring. Rangiku gaped.

"But… but you see-"

"Rangiku," Toshiro said. "Don't you have paperwork you need to do?"

"… yes, taichou," she said, pouting as she walked over to her desk. Toshiro sighed, turning back to his own paperwork.

"Urahara, where's Tiamut?" Ichigo asked, entering the shop. Urahara looked over.

"Hm? She's training," he said. "Did something happen?"

"Halibel," Ichigo said. "Well, her Halibel."

"Her…? Oh, you mean the Halibel from the Alterverse?" Urahara asked.

"The what?" Ichigo asked.

"The nickname I've given Tiamut's dimension," Urahara said. "Since it seems to be an alternate universe. Clever, isn't it?"

"Yeah, sure…" Ichigo said. "Anyways, I'm gonna ask Tiamut about it."

"Of course," Urahara said. "Ah, I'd be careful though. She seems to be a in a bad mood."

"When is she in a good mood?" Ichigo replied, heading back. Urahara chuckled, then thought. So, that showed the whereabouts of two of the four, then where…?

Urahara turned, watching as Rukia, Renji and Tesra stepped from a portal. Ah, there was the third one, it seemed.

"Oh? So you've returned so soon, Kuchiki-san?" he asked, smiling behind his fan. Rukia nodded.

"We needed to confirm whether or not he was from Tiamut's dimension," she said, pointing to Tesra.

"The Alterverse!" Urahara said.

"Eh… what?" Rukia asked.

"It's the name I came up with for Tiamut's dimension," Urahara said. Rukia blinked.

"Right…"

"She won't want to see me," Tesra said. Rukia and Renji flinched. It was the first time the Arrancar had spoken since they'd began escorting him.

"What?" Renji asked.

"Tiamut. She won't want to see me," Tesra said.

"Why's that?" Rukia asked. Tesra didn't respond.

"Well, it doesn't matter if she wants to see you or not," Renji said. "All she has to do is tell us if you're from her dimension or not."

"Where is Tiamut?" Rukia asked.

"Training," Urahara replied. "And Ichigo just went to talk to her."

"Huh? Why's that?" Renji asked.

"It seems he met up with Halibel from the Alterverse," he said, shrugging.

"What? Another one?" Renji asked.

"That makes three…" Rukia said.

"Well, you better get down to talk to Tiamut, before she beats up Ichigo," Urahara said, waving them off with his fan.

"Yeah, right," Renji said, heading for the underground training room. Urahara merely snorted, while Rukia looked lost in thought. Tesra trailed behind the pair.

Tiamut swung wildly, erratically jumping around the training grounds as she fought hundreds of invisible opponents. She was panting, sweat dripping down the sides of her face. She'd been doing the same routine for hours, though she didn't feel as if it were helping at all.

"Oi! What are you doing?" Ichigo asked, starling the girl. He was standing at the bottom of the ladder, brow arched. Tiamut flash stepped to him.

"Fight me!" she demanded. Ichigo blinked.

"I came here to talk," he said. Tiamut growled.

"Then fight me while we talk!" she said. "But I can't get the old man to do it, and I neeed to spar with someone!"

"… fine, I guess it couldn't hurt," Ichigo said, scratching the back of his head. Tiamut grinned, then jumped back.

"Whenever you're ready!" she called. Ichigo sighed, then grabbed his badge and flash stepped in front of the girl. She blinked. "Nice outfit."

"What? The other me doesn't have this shihakusho?" Ichigo asked. Tiamut shook her head.

"Not at all," she said, then jumped forward, drawing her zanpakuto. Ichigo blocked out of reflex, and Tiamut shifted to kick at his head. Ichigo pushed forward, knocking her back. The girl back flipped, but just barely managed to keep her balance. Then she charged again, but this time Ichigo was ready. He caught her blade and slid it off his own, then stepped forward to swing. Tiamut ducked, then shot forward between Ichigo's legs. Ichigo whirled around, just in time to get a blade between the eyes.

"Sloppy," Tiamut said, grinning. Ichigo stared then snorted.

"Not bad," he said. Then he whirled around the opposite way, keeping his blade low, forcing Tiamut to backflip away. "What do you know about the Halibel from your world?"

"Not much," Tiamut said. She leap forward, aiming a flying roundhouse kick at Ichigo's head. The teen dodged, then swung with Zangetsu. "She's a smuggler, though."

"A smuggler?" Ichigo asked, jumping forward as Tiamut flipped away. He swung Zangetsu down, and the girl barely had time to jump to the side.

"Uh-huh," Tiamut said. She charged forward, then spun at the last moment, earning as knick from Zangetsu as she brought her zanpakuto around and across Ichigo's neck. "Sloppy. She smuggled shinigami and humans to the resistance through a series of way stations manned by other smugglers."

"I see," Ichigo said, relaxing as the blade was taken away. He arched a brow. "For such a sort sword, you would have killed my twice by now."

"More'n that, but I'm being nice," Tiamut said, shrugging. "Plus, I'm kind of worn out from all the jumping around I was doing before."

"I don't think I've fought anyone with as much agility as you," Ichigo said, crossing his arms. Tiamut grinned.

"I am pretty fucking awesome," she said. Ichigo smirked.

"Too bad you don't have the power level to back it up," he said. Tiamut glared, then grinned.

"So? Doesn't matter if ya can't hit me," she said. Ichigo cupped his chin, nodding.

"True, but when you're training, you should work on your weaknesses, not your strengths, right?" he said. Tiamut snorted.

"That's all fine and good when you've got the convention of time to actually train," she said. "Back home, we all train our strengths, since that's what'll keep us alive."

Ichigo frowned. Tiamut had put her zanpakuto on her shoulder, and was looking away. There was a hard look in her eyes, and the teen tried to imagine what her world must be like. Then he sighed.

"I think you mean convenience," Ichigo said.

"That too," Tiamut replied, blushing lightly.

"And… since you're here, you should have time to work on your weaknesses, right?" Ichigo asked. Tiamut blinked, then looked at the teen. Ichigo smiled a bit at the look of surprise on her face, as if the idea had never occurred to her before. "Look, I'll help you. I won't dodge, and you won't run all over the place. Just come at me and attack with all you've got."

"… you two are really alike," Tiamut said, still looking surprise. Ichigo blinked.

"Who?" he asked.

"You and Kurosaki," Tiamut said. Ichigo snorted.

"I would hope so, since we are the same person," he said. Tiamut blushed, then growled and swung her blade in the air.

"You know what I meant, fucker!" she said, and Ichigo couldn't help but laugh.

"Tiamut."

The two turned to see Rukia, Renji and Tesra at the foot of the stairs. It was Rukia that had spoken, and was watching the girl's reaction with interest. When Tiamut's eyes fell on Tesra, they widened.

"Tesra…" then the girl glared and whirled away. "Your precious Nnoitra-sama is in Heuco Mundo, you should probably go and join him."

"See, I told you…" Tesra said, looking at the ground. Rukia looked between the two, and Renji took a step forward.

"Hey, brat! I don't care what kind of history you have with this guy, but we want you to confirm that he's from your dimension," he said. Tiamut snorted.

"The brace didn't tell you enough?" she said. "I highly doubt you have any technology to match it."

"…will you just walk over and tell us if it's him or not?" Renji asked, speaking through his teeth. Tiamut, growled, then stomped over. She glared at Tesra for a few moments. Then snorted and walked away.

"It's him," she said, then turned to Ichigo. "Can we start that training you were talking about?"

"Uh, sure," Ichigo said, giving a curious look to the trio at the ladder. Renji still looked pissed, while Rukia appeared pensive. Noticing Ichigo's look, she shrugged and waved as if to say 'I'll tell you later'. Ichigo nodded, then turned his attention back to Tiamut as the three went back up the ladder.

* * *

so... pretty long chapter this time. i just didn't have a better place to stop it...


	6. Alterverse 3

"Oi, Grimmjow-taichou," Ikkaku said, walking up behind the revizard. Grimmjow was sitting, crossed-legged on a large rock. He growled.

"What is it?" he asked, trying to keep focused.

"Urahara said he wanted to see you right away; he says he has new information about Tiamut-fukutaichou," Ikkaku said. Grimmjow was up and running before he'd managed to finish, but he wasn't surprised.

"She'd kick your ass if she heard you call her that!" the captain called over his shoulder. Ikkaku snorted.

"Hm, it's good to see him in such high spirits, don't you think?" Yumichika asked, making Ikkaku flinch.

"Yeah," he said. "Let's just hope it's good news."

"Urahara!" Grimmjow yelled, bursting into the building that served as the resistances' research and development headquarters.

"Ah, Grimmjow-taichou, right on time," Urahara said, smiling behind his fan.

"And so damn noisy…" Shinji said, picking at his ear with his pinkie.

"What did you find out?" Grimmjow demanded, ignoring the jibe. Urahara put his fan away, turning to a monitor.

"Why don't you do the honors," he said. "Nnoitra?"

"Nnoitra…?" Grimmjow asked, looking up at the screen. The Arrancar rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, no shit," Nnoitra said. "Listen, after your bitch sister's little stunt, Aizen decided to repeat the experiment, and send me, Tesra, Halibel and Vega off to our doom or some shit."

"So?" Grimmjow said, walking closer. "Get to the fucking point already!"

"Calm your fucking ass! Or I won't tell you shit!" Nnoitra said. Grimmjow growled, but said nothing. "That's better. Now, like I was saying, Aizen had us open garganta within a garganta, with coordinates I sent Urahara. It seems like I'm in Heuco Mundo before Azien took over. While I was here, I ran into your brat."

"Is she ok?" Grimmjow asked, gritting his teeth. Nnoitra sneered.

"See for yourself," he said, and pressed a button on his brace. Grimmjow watched the playback of Nnoitra's encounter with Tiamut, as well as Urahara, Rukia and Matsumoto. The revizard sighed in relief. Then he frowned.

"Wait, who was that she was talking to?" he asked, looking closer at the screen. Then he jumped back, falling on his ass as Nnoitra reappeared on screen.

"How the hell should I know?" he asked. "I told you, it looks like it's a world before Aizen took over."

"Hmm… who knows?" Urahara said, tapping his fan to his lips. "Thank you for your report, Nnoitra."

"Whatever, just get me the fuck out of here," Nnoitra said, cutting the transmission.

"That bastard…!" Grimmjow said, slamming his hand on the console.

"Oi! Careful, we don't have the supplies to replace that, you know!" Shinji complained.

"No need to get so upset, Grimmjow-taichou," Urahara said, waving his fan. "Besides, this is all good news!"

"What do you mean?" Grimmjow asked. Urahara smiled.

"Well, if Nnoitra could contact us…" he said. Grimmjow flinched in realization.

"We can reach Tiamut!" he said.

"It's not that simple," Shinji said.

"Why!?" Grimmjow demanded, leaning over and causing Shinji to bend, almost falling over.

"Nnoitra's message was only able to get through because there was already a link between this world and the one he's currently in," Akon said, overlooking another, smaller monitor. He continued as Grimmjow backed off. "Piggybacking that connection doesn't take much, but establishing our own will take a lot of energy, which we don't have right now."

"Then get it!" Grimmjow growled.

"Calm down, Grimmjow-taichou," Urahara said, patting the man on his shoulder. "Of course, we're doing all we can to get in contact with Tiamut, I just thought you'd like to know she's ok."

"…thanks," Grimmjow said. He turned away. "Please, let me know when you have more."

"Of course, of course~!" Urahara said, ushering Grimmjow out the door. "You just handle your duties, and we'll keep up here!"

"He's going to be insufferable now…" Shinji said, sighing.

"Ah, but now at least he has peace of mind," Urahara said.

"So?" Shinji asked.

"So, when we ask him to leave, it will be easier to convince him," Urahara said, opening his fan. "And he can focus when he meditates."

"Hm, I guess you have a point," the blonde said. Then sighed, turning to a nearby monitor. "I still wish he'd just let us do our work."

"Ah, but don't you understand his feelings better than most, Shinji-taichou?" Urahara asked, turning to the only monitor left. Shinji didn't say anything, but briefly rubbed at his shoulder. The three men continued to work silently, gathering data from the four braces they could reach in the other dimension.

"Ukitake-taichou, did you hear the news?"

"Hm? Ah, Rukia, good morning," Ukitake said, smiling at his former lieutenant.

"Good morning," Rukia said, sitting next to the man. They were in one of the pocket dimensions attached to Urahara's shop, this one a hill overlooking a small farm, with a town in the distance.

"What news did you come to share?" Ukitake asked. "And you know, you don't have to be so formal, when we have the same rank."

"Some habits never fade, it seems," Rukia said, smiling. Ukitake nodded, looking into the distance. "Urahara found out that Tiamut's ok."

"Ah, that's good to hear," Ukitake said, sighing in relief. Rukia nodded, then sighed.

"But it seems Aizen discovered Vega, Nnoitra, Tesra and Halibel," she said. "He sent them through a garganta from within a garganta. We aren't sure if it was simply a way to dispose of them, or if he was actually after something."

"Aizen seldom moves without reason," Ukitake said, expression hardening. Rukia nodded.

"It seems he still has a connection to the braces, so we're assuming there's something different about the dimension they're in," she said, following Ukitake gaze.

"Have we learned anything about that dimension?" the man asked. Rukia sighed.

"Nnoitra seems convinced it's the past, but Urahara doesn't feel the same," she said. Ukitake nodded.

"Urahara has good instincts," he said. "But, still, it's good to know she's okay."

"Yeah," Rukia said. "Though, I must admit, it was hard to imagine that brat letting herself die so easily."

"You can't just say you worried about her?" Ukitake asked, chuckling. Rukia frowned.

"How could I be worried about someone like that?" she demanded, and Ukitake laughed. "What?"

"Nothing, nothing," he said, waving his hand. Then he smiled. "She won't hear if you say something nice about her, you know."

"…heh," Rukia said, smiling as well. "That's why I'm saving up for when she can."

"Hm, let's hope it's soon," Ukitake said, expression growing serious again. Rukia nodded, and they both looked into the distance once more.

"Oi, taichou…" Ikkaku asked as Grimmjow headed back to the stone he'd been using to meditate before.

"Huh?" Grimmjow asked, looking up from his thoughts. Ikkaku fell into step beside him.

"What was the news? Did Urahara find fukutaichou?" he asked. Grimmjow nodded.

"Yeah," he said, still brooding. Ikkaku waited for him to add more, getting increasingly frustrated when he didn't.

"Oi! Is that all you have to say!?" Ikkaku demanded. Grimmjow flinched, then growled.

"What's your problem?" he asked, glaring. Ikkaku glared right back.

"All of us are worried about Tiamut-fukutaichou, and all you can say is 'yeah' when I ask about her!?" the bald shinigami said. Grimmjow growled a little, then punched Ikkaku in the face.

"Is that how you address your fucking taichou!?" he asked. Ikkaku brought his hand down from his nose, looking at the blood there. Then he grinned up at the revizard, and Grimmjow arched a brow.

"Good to finally have you back, Grimmjow-taichou," he said. Grimmjow felt his eye twitch, then he grinned.

"Oh really…?" he asked, and Ikkaku suddenly felt impending doom as Grimmjow loomed over him. "And where exactly have I been, eh..?"

"Eh…" Ikkaku said, then turned tail and ran as Grimmjow pulled out his zanpakuto.

"Where do you think you're going, eh!?" Grimmjow demanded, giving chase and swinging his blade as he could, forcing Ikkaku to dodge as he ran.

"Huh, looks like he's finally in a better mood," Renji said, sitting with Gin and Rangiku.

"Ah, seems his fukutaichou must be ok then," Gin said, taking a sip of tea.

"You think so?" Renji asked, continuing to watch Grimmjow and Ikkaku fight.

"Why else would he be in such high spirits?" Rangiku asked, a young girl asleep in her lap.

"Really, Abarai-taichou, do you doubt your own fukutaichou?" Gin asked, with his ever-present smile gracing his features. Renji's face fell, and he looked over at the pair.

"Sometimes I still can't believe that's true…" he said. Gin arched a brow.

"Oh? Is something wrong, Abarai-taichou?" he asked. Renji felt his upper lip twitch.

"N-nothing at all, Ichimaru-fukutaichou," he said, wondering if he'd done something terrible.

"Gin, stop teasing him!" Rangiku scolded, hitting the man lightly in the shoulder. "No matter how much you do, in the end, you still picked Renji as your taichou, you know?"

"Yes, yes," Gin said, batting the woman's hand away. Renji watched a moment, expression not changing.

"…and I still don't understand how you two are a couple…" he said. Rangiku glared.

"What!? Don't say that in front of Toshi-chan!" she said. "You want my daughter to think her parents don't love each other!?"

"S-sorry!" Renji said, leaning away from her. "That's not what I meant at all!"

"Ah? Then what did you mean, Abarai-taichou?" Gin asked, making the redhead blanch.

"You three look like you're having fun."

"Ah, Ichigo! What brings you here?" Renji asked, taking his escape.

"Just checking on everyone," Ichigo said. He looked over at Grimmjow and Ikkaku, where Yumichika had somehow ended up tangled in the mess. "What's got him so happy?"

"He just spoke with Urahara," Gin said, and Ichigo returned his attention to the trio. "We assume it was favorable news about Tiamut-fukutaichou."

"Uh, really?" Ichigo asked, surprised. Gin nodded.

"We can't know for sure, but I can't think of anything else that would make Jeagerjaques-taichou so excited," he said, and Ichigo nodded.

"Well, I'll ask Urahara then," he said, looking back over to the fight. "But first…"

Ichigo turned, walking calmly over to the continuing scuffle of Grimmjow's squad. And, calmly, he put an end to the entire fight.

"Well, there's the great captain commander for you," Gin said.

"Yeah…" Renji said, watching as Ichigo lectured the indignant trio, as well as a few others that had gotten involved.

"He's grown up a lot, hasn't he?" Rangiku asked, running a hand through her daughter's hair.

"Yeah…" Renji said.

"Now, what was it you were about to say, Abarai-taichou?" in asked, and Renji flinched, slowly turning to look at the two lieutenants.

"W-what?" he asked.

"About what you meant, not understanding how Rangiku and I were a couple," Gin said pleasantly. "What were you about to say?"

"Eh…" Renji said, leaning away as Rangiku looked over as well. "I…"

"Oi, Urahara," Ichigo said, entering the research and development tent.

"Not you too!" Shinji complained. Ichigo blinked in surprise.

"What?" he asked. Urahara cut him off, moving in front of Shinji and leading Ichigo to the large monitor.

"Ah, Ichigo, you must be here for the news about Tiamut-chan!" he said, setting up the playback for the resistance leader.

"Yeah, unless I'm in your way…" Ichigo said.

"As a matter of fact-" Shinji started.

"No! No! Not at all!" Urahara said, cutting him off. "Please, see for yourself!"

"Are we really working together here…?" Shinji asked no one as Ichigo watched the video of Tiamut meeting up with Nnoitra.

"So, she's really ok…" Ichigo said in relief.

"Yes, and it seems her injuries have been cared for as well," Urahara said. Ichigo looked at the older man.

"But where is she? And who was that with her?" he asked. Urahara sighed, pulling out his fan.

"We're still trying to figure that out," he said. Ichigo nodded, turning away.

"Well, it's good to know she's alright, at least," he said, and walked out. Shinji looked over.

"Hm, seems he wasn't as much of a pain as I thought he'd be," he said, before returning to his work. Urahara snorted.

"That's why I just showed him the video…" he said, as if it were obvious.

"Good, then you can get back to helping," Akon said, making Urahara flinch.

"Of course, of course~" he said, returning to one of the smaller monitors. Shinji snorted, and it was quiet once more.


End file.
